Notes for the Babysitter

Many of us have family and friends who we trust to watch our children, but what do you do when you have to go outside of that comfort zone. We found that our local hospital nurse and daycare center are wonderful resources to find quality sitters of infants and toddlers. When we had our first babysitter come to our home, I found myself constantly writing notes each time she came so I began to create a document that would need a little editing and I could print it out when needed. I used a template from a software program I had on my pc to get started, then I found a pullout from parenting magazine that was a nice addition to my notes. The link below is from a November 2004 article
Parenting.com Pullout Article

I added to the pullout information to include directions how to use the entertainment remote control, a TV channel listing guide from my satellite service and a medical permission sheet if necessary. I placed them in a three-ring binder and I only have to adjust destination during the babysitting time and add a few minor changes when she comes over. You can produce your own very easily and use these suggestions from a more recent parent magazine article

• Where you’ll be and when, along with the phone number
• Your cellular phone or paging number
• Pediatrician’s phone number
• Neighbor’s or relative’s phone number
• Your own address and phone number so that the sitter can tell the police or an ambulance where to come
• Location of phone and nursery monitor
• Location of car safety seat, first-aid kit, flashlight, and fuse box, in case of emergency
• Specifics about feeding, diapering, sleeping
• Information about what the sitter may eat or use, and your policy on visitors

This will make your life easier when it’s babysitting time and that is our goal here at ParentingToys.com